Ed Joyce is desperate to play for Middlesex against the touring South Africans this week so he can get back into the England spotlight.

Ed Joyce is desperate to play for Middlesex against the touring South Africans this week so he can get back into the England spotlight.

The acting Middlesex skipper has been out of favour on the international scene since being a virtual spectator at last year's ill-fated World Cup in the West Indies.

However, Joyce reckons a big score against the Springboks in a game starting at Uxbridge tomorrow would help him achieve some serious queue-jumping.

There is good precedent to support his claim. Alistair Cook and Ravi Bopara came within the radar of then-chairman of selectors David Graveney after scoring 214 and 135 in a two-day non-first class match against the touring Australians in 2005.

"I'm desperate to play because games against touring sides are a big thrill," said Joyce. "But these games are difficult to get right in terms of who plays.

"You want to put out your best side and dent the tourists' confidence ahead of the test series, but at the same time you'd like to give some bowlers a rest.

"It also seems big scores against the tourists are worth double those against other sides. Cook's double hundred and Bopara's ton definitely propelled them up the list.

"So this is a good opportunity to send a reminder to the selectors. I've been pretty consistent this year without getting that really big score."

What could count against Joyce, however, is the fact that Middlesex are likely to rest several players ahead of Tuesday's Twenty20 Cup quarter-final with Lancashire.

They will already be without Billy Godleman and Steven Finn, who will be on England U19 duty.

Godleman's absence should see Dawid Malan given the chance to build on his first-class debut century against Northants. Alan Richardson may return after ankle trouble.

If picked, Joyce will continue to take on captain's duties if regular skipper Ed Smith isn't ready to return from ankle trouble.

He said: "I've enjoyed being skipper as I've wanted to be a captain for several years, and went for it when Ed got the job.

"Being captain adds a new dimension to your game, having to think about the whole picture and not just your own performance."